The field of the disclosure relates generally to the service life of wiring insulation, and more specifically, to methods and systems for quantifying degradation of wiring insulation.
Wiring insulation typically consists of one or more electrically insulating polymers. Important properties of these materials such as electrical resistivity and resistance to cracking and chafing often degrade with increasing time after manufacture. The insulation of wires (in service on aircraft for example) can eventually degrade so substantially that unwanted electrical arcing and short circuits can result.
In service equipment may experience degradation in wiring systems that can lead to equipment failures, shorts, arcing, fires, and other operational and safety problems. One area where this degradation may occur is the various insulation and insulative coatings associated with the wiring systems. Of course, in many instances of in-service equipment, such equipment is exposed to extreme conditions (temperature, humidity, fuel immersion, etc.) which may shorten the service life of the wiring systems associated with such equipment. Measurement of the condition of the wire insulation can verify whether or not replacement of the particular wire or wiring system is needed.
However, there are no known non-destructive inspection tests for the evaluation of wire insulation. Wire insulation testing devices do exist for directly measuring the resistance of wiring insulation, but these testing devices, including mega-ohm meters can be destructive to the wires and insulation being tested and generally involve the disassembly and repair of the wiring system being tested.
As such, some of the disadvantages and limitations of the existing wire insulation testing solutions include disruptive system disassembly, costly destructive testing and laboratory analysis, potentially premature wiring replacement, and an inability to predict remaining life of the wiring system and the insulation associated therewith. At least some of the known wire insulation testing solutions incorporate one or more of thermal, oxidative (or “chemical”), and ultraviolet damage measurement of the materials, using infrared spectroscopy systems deployed within portable tools.